The idea of an organized music scene in Aberdeen is gaining traction as community leaders learn about the social and economic impact the creation of a music district in Fort Collins, Colo., has provided that community.

Jason Hoseney, manager of the Bishop Center at Grays Harbor College, gave a presentation to the Aberdeen Revitalization Movement late in February. He had traveled to Fort Collins to meet with two men who had organized the music scene there that has in just a few years’ time become a big part of the city’s identity and a major economic force. He said the relationship between the Fort Collins music scene and Colorado State University has proven mutually beneficial, something he could see happening with a music scene in Aberdeen and Grays Harbor College.

“In a general sense, I think it will help us attract musicians to our area and retain our emerging artists,” said Hoseney. “The college’s existing music programs would potentially benefit, and a music district could possibly open doors to new programs as the need arises. Becoming a destination location for creative people of all backgrounds can create new synergies that we haven’t even imagined yet.”

Jesse Elliot is one of the creators of the Fort Collins music district. A touring musician for years, he found himself in Colorado in 2012, decided to stick around, and in 2016 took a job as the director of the Bohemian Foundation’s Music District, the official name of the Fort Collins music scene, which usually just goes by “The Music District.”

Music scholar Bryce Merrill, PhD., is music programs manager for the Bohemian Foundation and co-creator of the Fort Collins music district. Founded in 2001, the foundation supplies grants and other support in four program areas: Community, Music, Global, and Civic. According to their website, they “work to empower citizens and impact communities through our grantmaking, Foundation-directed programs, and events.” Merrill has his PhD. in Sociology and has consulted with government and nonprofit organizations to create policies and programs to advance the arts. He has published pieces detailing the benefits a centralized music business can have for an area that has the common parts needed for it to be successful.

The foundation supports the Fort Collins music district, calling it “a dynamic gathering hub, workspace and creative playground for the music community. The Music District is designed to help anyone hone their craft, learn the business and share skills and passions with musicians and music lovers. A living laboratory, it will continuously evolve to meet the ever-changing needs of the northern Colorado landscape and the wider music world.”

Hoseney met with both men earlier in the year and hoped to garner their interest in helping with the development and organization of a similar music scene in Aberdeen. Whatever he said worked; Hoseney said both men will be coming to the Greater Grays Harbor business forum this May to speak with community leaders about doing just that.

Why would a college be interested in exploring the possibilities of teaming up with an organized music scene? The Fort Collins scene has a very close relationship with Colorado State University and their central location is just across the street from the campus.

“We work closely with CSU on many different fronts,” said Elliot. “Music, production, talent development and more.”

Grays Harbor College also has a solid music program and it could potentially benefit from an organized central music scene.

Aberdeen has several of the elements that are needed to start up an economically and socially relevant music scene. According to a large-scale study done about the positive impact a music scene can create sponsored by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and an organization representing Canada’s recording industry called Music Canada, there are four items that are crucial to the creation of a music scene: Artists and musicians, access to spaces and places to play, a receptive and engaged audience, and record labels and other music related businesses.

The Alley — the term coined for Aberdeen’s music scene — has become more organized in the last several months, thanks in large part to the work of local musician and promoter Wil Russoul. He continues to work with downtown businesses to provide local artists with different venues to play, touting the potential live music has to attract and keep customers. There are recording facilities scattered throughout Aberdeen, Montesano and beyond, most of them privately owned, but with high enough quality equipment to get a band started in the right direction if they were made available to local acts.

Aberdeen has the basic foundation for a music scene, and the group gathered at the previously mentioned Aberdeen Rehabilitation Movement meeting seemed enthusiastic and more than willing to hear what the Fort Collins representatives have to tell them in May.

98520 campaign

Russoul has given the Aberdeen music scene a name — The Alley — and figures it also needs an identity, preferably one that incorporates the music scene into the community in which it performs. To that end, he landed on 98520, Aberdeen’s zip code.

“98520 is a grassroots campaign to harness the creativity of folks ready to take a chance and invest in their tomorrow through art and music,” said Russoul. “I feel we all have been waiting for the one day when someone or something makes our lives better. Truth is, we — you and me — are that catalyst. And it begins in a place where we — our neighbors, and people from all over — drive through: downtown Aberdeen.”

Russoul believes there are enough creative minds in the Aberdeen area to come up with a plan to completely organize a cohesive music scene that would encourage the development of new artists, give them a reason to stay in the area, and also provide a scene that would encourage people traveling through to stop for a spell and take it in. There are obvious benefits for a community known to provide music at a wide variety of venues, offering many different musical styles that are ongoing on a weekly basis. People come, eat, drink and stay when there’s enough entertainment to keep them here.

Travelers to Austin, Tex., for example, not used to the music scene there might be surprised to find bands playing in the airport terminal and at local grocery stores. That’s what the Austin music scene has grown into, and their South by Southwest and Austin City Limits festivals are huge draws and giant contributors to the local economy.

“We hope to create music, art, videos and merchandise that promote and benefit Aberdeen and its music scene, The Alley,” said Russoul. “The Alley is not just for music; it is about all art.”

The 98520 concept is still in its infancy, but the goal is eventually to use any revenue generated by the campaign to plug right back into the community and The Alley itself.

“As we build this the strategy behind merchandising and fundraising is to create our own economy that cycles back into helping increase the needs of the scene,” said Russoul. The money could be used to promote the scene further, to provide music scholarships at Grays Harbor College – expanding on Russoul’s Play it Forward program – even buying equipment that can be rented at a reasonable cost so performers who may not have their own can still join in the scene. That’s what they do in Fort Collins, and it’s paying off.

“Imagine the story we can tell — from nothing we made something?” said Russoul, adding this will take a community to make work. “This is a faith walk, folks. Let’s continue to do this together. The world is watching us and wondering. What is our response?”

BOBBY REINHOLTZ PHOTO The Alley, Aberdeen’s music scene, was born out of a spirit of local artists supporting their fellow artists. Efforts are underway to organize The Alley, including having representatives from the young but very successful Fort Collins, Colo. music scene come to speak at Greater Grays Harbor’s business forum in May.

BOBBY REINHOLTZ PHOTO Wil Russoul, the local singer, songwriter and promoter behind The Alley, continues working to further organize the music district into a cohesive unit. He has devised a marketing plan for The Alley incorporating Aberdeen’s zip code, 98520, to spur interest and ensure no matter how far it spreads, the heart of The Alley will always be in downtown Aberdeen.